Driver Dead, Residents Homeless After Car Crashes In To House

ST. LOUIS, MO (KTVI) – An SUV crashed in to a north St. Louis apartment building Friday evening, leaving the driver dead and residents without a home. It happened when the vehicle veered off the 8000 block of Hall Street just before 6:00pm Friday.

According to St. Louis Fire Department Spokesman Captain Dan Sutter, the SUV was on fire when crews arrived at the scene, but that fire didn’t spread to the building. He says the male driver died on impact.

No one else was in the car, and luckily, no one was in any of the building’s apartment units at the time of the crash.

At this point, investigators aren’t saying how fast the SUV was going, but say there were few obstacles to stop the car before it crashed into the apartment.

Sutter explains, “[The building] is a good distance from the roadway, that is correct. The vehicle entered the building and is completely inside the building. This is an eight-family unit.”

Red Cross volunteers were called to the scene to make sure residents had a place to say. Sutter says the crash left the building, now covered with ‘caution’ signs, dangerous and unstable, “We’ve got the building division on the scene, assessing the structure; it appears to be significantly damaged and it’s not known if anyone will be allowed to occupy this building at any time soon, or for that matter, ever.”

FOX 2 spoke with residents who didn’t want to be interviewed on camera, but said they’re mostly worried, at this point, about getting the belongings they need out of the building. One said he’s thankful that friends and family are offering a temporary place to say, but finding a new permanent home is of course, more of a challenge.